I have a name
by Jc1009
Summary: What happens with Orihime is pushed to far. Uliquorra finds out the hard way and has to learn to face some hard truths in himself. A one shot for now but if it's liked I'll write more.
1. Chapter 1

Yeah yeah yeah, i should not be writing another thing until i finish what's been hanging..but It's eating my brain. So Enjoy my first Bleach Fic, "I have a name."

If you like it it'll be longer than a one shot..

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><p>In the time that Orihime had been in Las Noches she has gone through a myriad of emotions. Fear, anger, resentment, sadness, loneliness, boredom but perhaps the most surprising to her was lust. The first time she had dreamed of him she had woken up and retched from the memory. His lips on hers, his hands on her body, the way she felt under his gaze. The wonton things she let him do, the things she had done to him.<p>

When she had woken a remembered them she had vomited and of course he had picked that moment to make his daily appearance at her room.

"Woman," He said as he impassively watched her voiding the contents of her stomach. "You are unwell?" No concern, no worry, not the slightest bit of worry. Nothing just dead emotion. She had looked up, wiping her lips on the back of her hand momentarily and looked at him before she shook her head unable to speak yet. He watched her for a heartbeat. Two. Three.

"If you are not unwell, you are not to engage is such behavior. Yours is to survive and be of use to Lord Aizen. You are unable to be of use if you are not fed enough or have voided your stomach contents. I will feed you via IV if this type of behavior continues." She watched his lips, remembering the way he had used them on her in her dream, she looked up at his eyes and wondered if they could really ever look clouded from desire or half lidded from fulfillment. Most of all she wondered why she would dream of him.

Ichigo would make sense. This did not. She resented him. She despised him. He had stolen her and delivered her into the hands of a monster. Her life was not her own because of him. Her friends were all gone. She was alone. Everything was lost and she should despise him, but each day she wondered more and more.

Who was this Espada who would watch over her? She wanted to know about him. She wanted to know him. There were times she would almost ask, but would catch herself before the words could bubble up. So, she soon grew to not only like her dreams but to look forward to them. In her dreams he would not only answer her but would engage her.  
>He would even smile for her.<p>

Those dreams though, were just the start.

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><p>She was laying her small bed, the moon casting it's glow upon her prone form when he entered her room. It was long after his usual visiting time but he had come to take try and observe her when she was in an unguarded state. He had been told it would allow for a more accurate view of her mental state. As all things with Lord Aizen though, he knew there would be something more but he supposed he'd find out when the time came what his master meant.<p>

So as it was he entered her room and was she lost to sleep. He was about to leave when he saw her moving slightly in her bed and instead froze to see if she was stirring. She was not, merely talking in her sleep and reacting to it it would seem. He decided it would prove prudent to listen, perhaps he could gleam some information from her words. So he stood in the dark of her room, hidden by the shadows and waited. It wasn't long though before he heard his name.

It hurt him some where and he was perplexed. He had simply thought for a moment that perhaps she was having a nightmare and he had felt his chest tighten at the thought that it was he would be featured in her nightmares. He pushed the thought aside. It was only natural he supposed but still...why had he felt that way?

It would seem too that this was wrong. She was smiling. Her lips were upturned as they were when she was happy. He had seen her in the world of the living and had seen her smile enough to know that she was feeling the human emotion of happiness. He was curious though as to why his name would illicit any happiness from her. She turned over, still smiling but her mumbling was incoherent. He stayed a while longer but nothing else could be learned. He left her room as silently as he could, but as the door was sealed shut he missed her waking slightly to the sound. She looked around in confusion and spent the rest of the night wondering what it was she could feel traces of around her.

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><p>Morning found Orihime tired and grumpy. Her dream had been going so well, she was on the verge of a great breakthrough of her fantasy relationship with Ulquoirra. He had been about to tell her he loved her. While she knew rationally that this would never come to pass she had wanted to hear it so badly. She had come to love her fantasy Uliquorra and her dreams of him were now her bright shining hope in this dark world. She knew it wasn't rational but she desired him.<p>

She had cared for Ichigo but she had never desired anyone like this. Had he come to her in the moments after her dream she would have surrendered for him everything to Aizen just to feel his lips on her, his fingers on her body, the heat of his breath on her neck. It was this revelation she was mulling over when he came in without preamble during the light of day.

He looked at her for a moment. She felt herself still under his gaze but could not bring herself to break eye contact. Her heart pounded in her ears and she felt blood rushing from her face. Oh how she would love to go to him and wrap her arms around him.

"Woman. Why do you look so drawn?" Orihime did not answer him. She didn't know how to say that she had been sure she had felt his presence in the middle of the night in her room. She was sure she was crazy. "Tell me the reason.." He pressed.

"I did not sleep." She finally answered. He looked at her, his eyes not changing. She averted her eyes. Why couldn't he be her dream lover?

"You were sleeping fine from what I saw." She snapped her head up and looked at him wide eyed, feeling herself go red. He had watched her sleep at her most vulnerable. She felt hot under his gaze. "You spoke to me in your dream, did you not?"

"It's not that simple, " she trailed off unsure how to answer him.

"You said my name, it seems fairly simple woman." He pressed her harder. Suddenly she became so tired of it all. So tired of day after day living in fear, and loneliness. So tired of worry and bored. She as mad now.

"I have a name" She snapped at him. She stood up and took two steps across the room and looked at him. "I HAVE A NAME!" She yelled his his face. He did not react.

"You are a tool for Lord Aizen's will. You belong to him, Woman. You are a tool." She was acting irrational, he knew he should not engage her but he did for some reason he couldn't quite understand.

That tore it. That really tore it. She glared at him and continued. "I have a name Uliquorra Cief. I am Orihime Inoue. I. HAVE. A. NAME! Tools have names, shovel, hammer, ax, Grimmjaw, Ulquoirra. I have a name too! You will address me by name!"

He was trying to figure out her reaction as it was wholly unexpected. She had shown such a broken spirit up until now. She had responded as planned to all the cages he had built for her mind.

"Woma-" he was interrupted by her hand making contact with his skin. His head jerked to the side and she could see the red hand print across his cheek. While her hand stung she knew he was probably more annoyed then hurt. She braced herself.

"I HAVE A NAME!"

He looked at her and took her in wide eyes and tear streamed face. He turned on his heel and left the room without a word. He could hear her crying and laughing behind her door. He resolved to check on her later to see if this momentary lapse was part of a mental breakdown or just a one time thing. He did not linger outside of her door as he had last night and or as he had found himself doing the days before. He just strode to his chambers and once there he closed himself in and leaned against the stone stab of his wall, sliding down to the floor. He leaned his head back and exhaled.

"Orihime." He said quietly to himself. He tasted the name and felt it in his mouth. He had spoken her name to Lord Aizen but that had been it. Now he took his time with it and considered it. "Orihime." He said again. This time it was louder. He closed his eyes and pictured her, the way she had looked last night when she had his name and he said once more. "Orihime." He had done his best to imitate her tone and it was then his eyes widened in surprise.

She had said his name with reverence. With desire. Perhaps even with some kind of caring emotion. He felt light-headed. Why would she do such a thing? He was her warden.

"Orihime." He said once more and this time it was a sigh filled with sadness. He felt certain that after her outburst today she would never say his name in such a way again. It felt as if he was struggling for breath, as if being strangled at the thought. Why did he feel this way?


	2. Chapter 2

((OK, so I had accidentally uploaded my first draft of the original chapter-which i have since fixed..I think, but I also lied as this is apparently eating my brain as it's 2:30am where I am and this story is begging to be written. So..here it is.))

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><p>Orihime had surprised even herself with her outburst. She had no idea that she still possessed such spirit. It was as if she been possessed by another. In a way she was scared of the reprisal she felt would be coming but in another way she was proud of herself. She had stood up for herself.<p>

Orihime Inoue had stood up for herself.

Pride blossomed in her chest and she was smiling for the first time in days during the day. She might not be able to save herself or do much about her current positiong but she could at least stand up for herself on this thing. She would make Ulquiorra call her by her name. As she wondered if it would be a battle or not she remembered slapping him and her cheeks grew redder. She felt the start of the giggle in her throat.

She hadn't intended any of it but she couldn't stop from replaying the image in her mind. She had thought that perhaps it was surprise she had seen in his eyes if even just for a second. That couldn't be true though..

Could it?

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><p>Ulquiorra had sequestered himself in his chambers till evening. He had been trying to piece together the nuances of the woman's odd behavior that morning. She had lashed out aggressively. At least, aggressively for her. He had watched her behavior carefully and he knew that she was a gentle soul. It part of what had made her so easy to manipulate. He had studied her.<p>

He had done his best to learn about her for Lord Aizen. As he thought of how he had monitored her he began to wonder more and more if everything he had done was solely for Lord Aizen's benefit. If he allowed his mind to follow his line of reasoning he knew that he had done somethings for himself. He had lingered inside of her room more and more often. Not telling her to hurry when she ate. He had gone to her home in the human world several times to see where it was she had resided once the soul reapers had left. He had told himself it was recon. An exercise to know her better. He had lingered among her things, sometimes gently touching something that had touched her body or studying how she had arranged her belongings just so with so much care.

He had wanted to know more about her. He had wanted to know Orihime Inoue more. He felt the tug inside of him since he had watched her during her last 12 hours in the world of the living. She fascinated the fourth espada in a way that nothing had since he had become a hallow. The way she moved, the shapes her face would take on as it moved with emotion in response to those things he had come to know as humans. He wanted to know about it all. Especially the thoughts that went through her head. He wanted to know why she "felt" these "emotions". Things like "faith" and "care" and even "Love".

He had heard it spoken of many times during his trips to the world of the living. This "love" was a human emotion and from what he could see if seemed to inspire a broad range of actions in the living. He had seen men topple and abuse the women they had claimed to "love". He had seen a woman holding a new born child to her breast gently and cradle the baby with the utmost care out of the same love. He had seen tears shed in joy and pain as well as the physical action of laughter. All because of this love. He had categorized it as illogical, and one thing he knew was the humans were often illogical beings. They lived their short lives in such strange ways. They followed their emotions instead of facts and would often; as he'd seen the woman who now occupied his Lord's cell as well as his inner most thoughts, make decisions that were not in their best interests based upon these emotions.

He spent hours standing at his window, looking out over the sands around Las Noches. The desert made sense to him. He was as barren and as desolate as it before Orihime Inoue had come into his life. He had been just as empty but now as the moon rose over the white sands and it was time to feed and check on the woman who's physical care he had been entrusted with he found he was experiencing something strange.

It had first been a small thing that had twisted in his gut till it pulled at the air in his lungs. He had wondered at Orihime's "love" for the substitute soul reaper. When he had thought about the words she had said and the tears that she had shed over the man he knew was his inferior he became illogical. He felt a strange pain. It burned below his hallow hole and robbed him of all thought for what seemed an eternity. Why did he care if the woman "loved" the substitute soul reaper? Why did he feel angry at the thought that she loved?

No, that wasn't it. If he allowed himself to follow that thought he found that he didn't care if she loved. It was that she didn't love him but the substitute soul reaper, Ichigo Kurosaki. He remembered the way she had turned her face in her dream and said his name. His mind had offered up a number of illogical fantasies in response. He imagined that she had awoken and spoken to him in the same manner, beckoned him deeper into her chamber, invited him into her arms, to share her bed.

In his pocket his fingers had bitten into his thighs as he imagined it. He knew it made no sense to think of these things but he found he had no desire to stop his thoughts from returning to the small woman. He wondered if he touched her if she would smile for him. He curled his fingers into fists and clenched them tightly as he wondered if she would allow him to run his fingers down her exposed neck, he found he desired to feel beat of her human heart underneath of his palm. He wanted to know how warm her skin really was. He wanted her to smile at him like she did in her dreams.

He wanted her to love him.

He closed his eyes when he allowed the realization to wash over him. He, the fourth Espada of Lord Aizen's arrancar army wanted the human girl that his lord claimed as his own to love him and him alone. More than that, he desired her. He wanted Orihime to be his woman. Not Ichigo Kurosaki's, or Lord Aizen's. He wanted her for himself as his woman. Not his tool, not his possession, but his woman.. She had made him feel.

When Ulquiorra thought about situation he felt emptier. He had stolen her for Lord Aizen, she would never smile for him in reality. He would never know how if felt to brush the hair gently from her face, to kiss her softly, to run his fingers over her with reverence and to be loved by her in return.

He was not a man. Biologically speaking he was anatomically male. He possessed the form and functioning physical parts but he was a sword forged for Lord Aizen's will. He was an espada. He wasn't allowed to have desires.

He wasn't allowed to want for himself.

He wasn't allowed to love.

Especially Orihime Inoue. So he had tried very hard to make her not real. Her outburst had brought all of this into sharp focus. Orihime was real, terrifyingly so to him. She was the only being that had ever made him feel anything beyond boredom, or irritation.

As the desert winds calmed below him he tried to calm the storm within him. On the surface at least he was composed. It would have to do because he had to go an access Orihime's state.

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><p>Orihime had not wanted to sleep after she had slapped Ulquoirra. She had not wanted to see her dream lover so soon after his actual form had upset her so. She had come to want to know the real Uliquora as she desired to be in the arms of his dream counter part. She knew it made no sense but she wanted them to be the same.<p>

She had slapped him with all her might but she kept coming back to the moment she had made contact with his cheek. The cool smoothness of his skin. It reminded her of alabaster marble. Perfect, beautiful but cold. She felt bad as soon as she had calmed herself after her outburst. She feared it may have done more harm than good and she was scared when her door was pushed open.

"I am coming in," Ulquiorra said in his usual way, "Orihime." When her said her name Orihime had frozen unsure if she had heard him correctly. Had he really said her name? She entered her room and crossed the distance in his usual unhurried way.

Orihime's grey eyes had watched him to see if this was trick on his part but he didn't seem to acting any differently than normal. If she knew the thoughts that were going through his mind she'd have been shocked but not being privy to his innermost thoughts as she wished to be she had to base her opinions on what she could see.

"I am sorry I attacked you Ulquoirra!" She exclaimed and he knew from the tone of her voice that she meant it. She was too tender for her own good, like a gentle flower in a field that could be broken by the wind or plucked by a careless person. If she stayed in this place he knew his precious flower would be trampled, her beauty and goodness destroyed.

'His'? He looked over her critically. No she would never be his. He had to detach himself. It was for her protection as much as his.

"Are you well now?" She flushed and looked him in the eyes before blushing and turning away to stare out the window as he had seen her doing more and more as of late.

"I am ok." It was quiet and he took a few steps to where she was so he could see her face to judge the truth for himself. She was composed and had no tears on her face but her calm surface was just a cover.

"Do not lie to me..Orihime." he said just loud enough for her to hear. She turned to her,worrying on her bottom lip and her eyes were wide. He thought of the time that Yammy had hit her during the first encounter they had. He remembered how she had charged in to try and save her friend and he had known then that she had bravery. It was that bravery now that allowed her to face him. "Are you truly alright, Orihime?" His voice was soft, the answer seemed to really matter to him. She tried to smile at him but it faltered and her breath hitched.

"I don't know Ulquoirra." She laughed but it was not the happy sound he come to remember. He could detect sadness and longing in the laugh. It unnerved him to be so close to her in her time of despair. His discomfort was made worse when he thought that he might be the cause of her being anything but happy. Had he not been so focused on her happiness or lack there of he would have caught his hand before his left his pocket but as it was the back of his fingers traced down her cheek. He could see a blush coloring her face and found the effect was not unpleasant. It pleased him to know he was the cause of such an overt physical reaction from the woman before him. She gasped at the coolness of his flesh on hers and looked at him wide eyed.

"Please do not despair Orihime. It displeases me." He said and her lips parted in shock. She took a shuddering breath and he watched a smile form on her lips. She closed her eyes and leaned against his fingers for a moment before he thought better of it and withdrew his hand. When she opened her eyes they had regained their shine and her face was creased with worry. She wasn't happy but she was no longer suffer. Her eyes were a light and the corners of her lips were upturned. It was small but he knew it was genuine and he had brought it forth. He found himself incredibly pleased by the knowledge.


	3. Chapter 3

((This has not been proofed, it's being written on my cell but I want to get it up))

It was strange, Orihime thought that she didn't hate Ulquiorra. She never had. She had run through a myriad of feelings towards her warden but hate wasn't one of them. She feared him; that was true, but she also was curious about him.

Whenever he was near she felt just an overwhelming nothing. An emptiness that hurt her. He wasn't just a hallow, it was as if he was hallow. The thought made her sad and her heart hurt for him. Did he want to be empty inside? There had been times that she had thought that she might prefer being empty inside so she didn't have to feel anymore hurt or pain.

When Sora had died, or when she saw how Ichigo would all all over himself for Rukia. When she saw her friends being hurt and when she had first been brought to this awful place. Now though..now she knew the truth that she would never want to be hallow. Those emotions, even though they hurt, made life more real.

She was contemplating this when her morning meal arrived the next day. With his usual threats to have her force fed she focused on the meal till but a few bites remained. After he had abruptly left her the day before she had been confused. He had told her that he wanted her to not be sad. To Orihime that meant that he wanted her to be happy, but was that the case? Was that was he had meant?

Her warden was always very direct so perhaps she should stop trying to read into the things he said and take them at face value. Ulquiorra did not seem to play the palace games of politics or intrigue. No he was blunt. She supposed that was part of why she was coming to like him. She always knew where she stood with Uliquorra. She knew he was dangerous to her but found that she didn't have it in her to fear him at the moment. Instead she tried to sneak glances at him as she ate.

As her eyes came up to watch him before she took her last bite she found that she was being intently watched with open curiousity on his face. She swallowed hard and looked him in the eyes. For some reason her pulse jumped when she did.

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><p>Over the centuries that he had lived Ulquiorra had always been self composed. Since his ascention from mindless hallow he had liked to think he had more dignity that most of the trash that he was surrounded by. While he lived with him the society of Las Noches he was not truly apart of it, not in the same way that Grimjow or Harribell were. They were integrated into the society that Lord Aizen had created. While Ulquiorra functioned well enough within in it he knew that he'd never truly be a part of it.<p>

He had never been bothered by the idea until now. He knew that the man he served had plans for Orihime Inoue that went far deeper than what he was told, but it was known that he intended for the woman to be a part of the society of Las Noches in a large capacity. While he should have no opinion on it he had come to realize along with his desire to be loved by the woman he wanted to be around her, but that also meant being apart of the tapestry that was woven in Las Noches.

He had no desire to be constantly surrounded by trash like Nnoitra or Grimjow. He could only barely tolerate Yammy and that was more so because the lower Espada somewhat hero worshipped him. This was different. He found that he...desired to spent time around Lord Aizen's captive.

Captive.

Lord Aizen's. He all came back to that. The woman might have followed him without a fight but she wasn't here of her own free will. While she may have dreamed about him; a thought that brought him a feeling he couldn't describe, she would never be here-with him or otherwise-freely.

He had been so absorbed in his thoughts that he had not seen her finish her meal and her eyes upon him. When he met her gaze his throat felt tight. He knew he should look away, not encourage the feeling in his chest or the actions she seems more and more intent on making lately but he didn't want to crush another part of her. He wanted to preserve her the way she was.

"Orihime." He said and she smiled at the use of her given name. The silliest things seemed to please her, but seeing that he was the one who had performed the action that had pleased her he felt irrational pride. He had made her smile. Twice in as many days. He was keeping count now he realized. "You have an audience with Lord Aizen, you have one hour to prepare yourself. I will return then, I suggest you use the time to not only compose your physical persons but your so called 'heart' as well."

"What does he want to talk to be about?" She asked as he turned to leave. He acted as if he had not heard her because he himself wasn't privy to what the Kinda of Heuco Mundo wanted. He wasn't going to respond. He shouldn't have responded but with his hand on the door he paused but didn't not turn back to her. He didn't want to see if the smile she had had freely give him moments ago was gone. He didn't want to be the cause of it's loss.

"I do not know." And with that he was gone.

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><p>Orihime had quickly dressed in a fresh uniform and righted her hair. Lacking cosmetics there was little more she could do so she had waited for Uliquorra, her mind running wild. What did Aizen want now? Was she to heal another of the espada? Perhaps he wanted her to heal him?<p>

It was the not knowing that had her so distracted that she had walked right into Uliquorra's back. She had been so absorbed in what she was thinking she had failed to notice that he had stopped before her, directly below the marble thrown of Lord Aizen. She gulped as she tumbled expecting to hit the floor but before she did she felt the cool hands of Ulquiorra on her. Her head was cradled in one of his hands, the other resting lightly on her abdomen. His eyes quickly met hers and she felt a jolt of electric that sent her cheeks on fire.

How could she be so silly! She was embarrassed to be staring on Ulquiorra but didn't look away till she heard the chuckle from above.

"My dear Orihime. Were you so entranced by me that you failed to notice anything else?" He was mocking her and she blushed harder as Uliquorra helped her up. Even though his hands had been cold she still felt a lingering something where they had made contact with her body. She bit her lip and flushed red looking away from him to Lord Aizen.

"I'm sorry, I just..." She trailed off as she looked at his face and realized that while his words had been light he was not actually amused by her faux pas. She bit her lip and looked down him fear and shame. That seemed to be the reaction he wanted because he was suddenly before her. Orihime couldn't help but tremble as she felt his finger slide along her cheek then hook beneath her chin, raising her face to look at his.

"Oh Orihime..there is no need to be embarrassed. It was an accident after all. It make me quite pleased to know that being around your King makes you so enraptured." She looked at him and nodded not wanting to say anything else. She averted her eyes to her hands that she was twisting nervously.

She wished she could reach out to Ulquiorra. He had a way of making her feel better just by being there and twice over the last two days he had gone out of his way to make her smile. She looked out of the corner of her eye to make sure he was still there.

While he had no facial expression she saw how tense his posture was and his eyes betrayed him. She knew she saw concern in them. She couldn't focus on that at the moment though. She looked at the man before her and he smiled wider. It was not a pleasant site.

"It pleases me to know that being around your future husband makes you so excited, Princess. Have no fear though Orihime...you will soon be my queen." When her jaw dropped he laughed and turned away. "In two months time we will be wed. All that is mine shall be yours my dear Orihime. And.."He turned back to her, the color drained from her face. "All that is yours will be mine."

With that she had been dismissed and she could hard feel her legs and she was led from the throne room. Her mind reeling, she only barely registered the feel of Uliquorra's hand on her arm, negotiating her through the hallways of Las Noches.

She was to marry him. Marry a man she did not love. A man she hated. The shock was wearing off and fear was taking hold. She turned towards Uliquorra her eyes wide.

"Will he kill me? " She asked, her voice just above a whisper and she looked directly into his eyes. He studied her face for a moment before looking back into her eyes. His grip loosened and she felt something leaking from him but in the emotional state that she was in she couldn't quite place it.

"I don't know." She knew Ulquiorra didn't lie but she wished just this once that he had.


	4. Chapter 4

**((Ok, so I know where this story is going-in theory but I don't feel like it's very good, certainly not the quality that you guys deserve for taking the time to read it. This chapter as well as the last one were written on my cell phone during my lunch breaks at work. I have a goal and a plot in mind, I do, but if it's not good let me know I'll scrap it and start over with something that works better. For reference this is after she's been in Las Noches for a bit, not right after her kidnapping. I'm not trying to beg for reviews but please let me know either via review or PM what you guys think))**

Ulquiorra had seen Orihime safely to her quarters and answered her question to the best of his ability. He hadn't lied to her when he said he did not know if Lord Aizen would kill her. What he hadn't told her was that he feared daily that the naïve red head would do something that displeased his master and he'd be forced to end her life.

He knew the first moment he came to fear that. It was during one of the mandatory briefings that he was required to give on her mental health as well as the state of her "turning". He had expressed his fear that she would never truly join the espied or Lord Aizen's cause and when he'd seen the man's steeple fingers and pinched expression he waited with his pulse racing for the order he felt certain would come next. He would be ordered to end her life and dispose of her body like the trash he so often dismissed.

The thought of having to snap her neck; he couldn't picture his hand thrusting into her sternum, past her ribs to the fleshy muscle she anthropomorphized so being punctured by his fingers or crushed in his hand. The idea of her scarlet blood staining his pale hand was something his mind refused to imagine, his whole person rebelled against the idea of a violent death for Orihime Inoue. While he had already decided she was a strong girl he knew that his hands, that had meted out more death than she could imagine with her delicate, human heart. He knew that if was ordered to he'd have to kill her and he wouldn't not make it painful or violent. The woman who smiled for her, and spoke to him of hearts and feelings would not be murdered like trash. He would do it if he was ordered to..he wouldn't have a choice..but he would make it an easy death for her.

The idea of her body breaking under his hands caused him physical pain. Ulquoirra hid it but the idea of her death coming from him caused him a deep pain. He watched his master carefully trying to brace himself for the order he knew would be coming. He held his body rigid, his mind trying to work out arguments to prevent the woman's death. He would use logic. He'd point out how valuable her power was, and even if she wasn't wholly on their side she would still do as she was told. They could use blackmail or manipulation. She was especially susceptible to threats against her friends. If they were to kidnap a human that held no spiritual talent and threaten that human with torture he was sure that she'd comply. He already had the human picked out.

"Ulquiorra," He looked his lord and master in the eye prepared to fight for the woman's continued life. "Make our guest feel more comfortable. Make sure she is prepared food to her taste. Find her reading materials she will enjoy, but nothing that will give her hope for escape. Answer a few of her meaningless questions. Make her feel like my honored guest."

Ulquiorra could do nothing but stare.

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><p>Orihime had not slept. Every time she had closed her eyes she had had nightmares of her upcoming nuptials to Aizen. At home point she had imagined him strangling her on their wedding night in their marital bed. She was drawn and jumpy the next morning when Ulquiorra announced his presence and entered her room.<p>

He paused and looked at her, his own appearance off in a way that she could not quite explain. His uniform was crisp, his skin held its usual parlor and his eyes..his eyes were the deep verdant that she had come to look forward to.

Las Noches was so devoid of color, she drank it in whenever she could see it. The red of her hair, the green of his eyes, the blue of Grimmjow and or the cocoa or Kaname Tosen's skin. Orihime never realized how for granted she had taken the world of the living. Her life in Karakura town had been so vivid and she didn't even know it until she had come to Hueco Mundo. He was still standing over her, studying her when the silent servant brought her meal.

The food was set before her and there was no threat. She looked him the eye and he silently held her gaze neither Ulquiorra or Orihime broke eye contact for a minute until he reached out and moved the dome from her meal. She looked down at the plate and felt her heart skip an excited beat as her eyes scanned the content of her plate.

Rice. Scrambled eggs. some curry chicken and, it couldn't be... She eyed the ramekin for a moment then picked it up and dipped her pinky finger in it before bringing it to her lips. It was..Red Bean Paste! She looked up at Ulquiorra who hadn't moved and broke into a smile. She was so happy that tears began to well up and she was soon sobbing.

* * *

><p>Ulquiorra furrowed his brow in confusion. He watched as the woman before him broke down into tears and felt as is he was a failure. Was this red bean paste not her favorite food substance? Did it not usually bring her joy? He found himself at a total loss as he occasionally did with Orihime. The woman vexed his thoughts and now he felt as if his chest was being crushed by a huge weight. He was unaccustomed to feelings like this and had no idea what it meant.<p>

Before he could process anymore thoughts he found her arms thrown around his neck and her face buried in his chest. She was babbling and he could only make sense of every few words.

"Thank you Ulquiorra. Thank you so much." He stood stock still and held his breath, he was strangely unwilling to remove her from his person. She was saying his name in a way that made him feel, lighter. He wasn't sure what to do so he allowed her to sob against his uniform, finding himself totally unable to care that his outfit was being soiled by her tears. He closed his eyes for a second and took a moment to allow his sense to take in the way she smelled and felt against him. He never really noticed how delicate her bones felt, or how small she seemed against him. He was not overly large but she was smaller still.

It stirred something inside of him. If he hadn't known better he'd have said it was a protective instinct. That was of course impossible because he was an espada, Lord Aizen's most trusted arrancar. He was incapable of caring, but he still enjoyed the feeling of her body close to him. He was enjoying the warmth of her and about to reach up his arm to touch her when she abruptly pulled away.

He watched her for any sign that he had done something to make her pull away from him but it seemed that it was her own sense of propriety.

She flushed as red as her hair and he found that this too was a pleasing site for him. She avoided his gaze and returned her attention to the red bean paste.

"How did you know this was my favorite?" He didn't answer, his voice having fled when he saw the vulnerability in her face and the way she worried on her lip. She didn't press him however, her hunger overcoming her interest and she began to devour the meal before her.

When Orihime finished everything on her plate she turned her full attention back to him and he saw pure joy in her face. It pleased him, but he did not show it. Neither of them discussed the events of the previous evening, both preferring not to think of it. Ulquiorra knew her reasons for avoiding the subject, but his own were not as clear.

He had never felt jealousy before and found now that he was unsure of it. He wanted to maul his lord and master. The man that had transformed him into what he was today.

What he was..he was a hollow.

He didn't have feelings. He didn't have wants or desires. He was a tool of Lord Aizen's will. He was a walking weapon. He curled his hands into fists into his pockets and willed the feelings inside of him to stop. He looked at Orihime and his resolved faltered. No, the woman. He looked at the woman. He had to think of her as such or he would be unable to perform his duties.

"Thank you Ulquiorra." She said, and he forced himself to look at her. He swallowed hard, she was smiling again as she said his name and it couldn't help but think that his name sounded so perfect on her lips. She had a lovely flush to her face and he wanted to do something that he could not name.

He only nodded and left her alone. When the door sealed behind him he couldn't help himself and he counted to four. Four times in three days he had brought a smile to her face.

He was as troubled by the knowledge that he cared as he was elated by the fact that he brought her even a fleeting moment of happiness, that he had caused her to smile..


End file.
